By Paul D. Bowker
MaxPreps.com
Maine South’s quick-strike offense has already impacted the Class 8A football playoffs.
All the Hawks and Vanderbilt recruit Charlie Goro did last week was put up 63 points on Stevenson in the first round of the playoffs, storming back from a 15-point deficit for a 63-29 victory.
In Illinois’ eight classes, only two 4A teams scored more: Huntley defeated Batavia 70-63 and Antioch blasted Chicago Harlan, 68-6.
Goro threw for 377 yards and six touchdowns as Maine South (10-0), ranked No. 3 in Illinois by MaxPreps, scored 56 unanswered points. It was the kind of offensive attack that No. 7 seed Loyola Academy (8-2) must be ready for in Saturday afternoon’s second-round game at Park Ridge.
An early lead on Maine South means virtually nothing, especially considering the Hawks average 56 points per game.
“I told the team, ‘Don’t flinch, don’t panic and play 48 minutes. Do what we told you in practice and we’ll be all right,’ " Maine South coach Dave Inserra said.
Goro has thrown for more than 2,400 yards and 34 touchdowns, numbers Vandy coaches must be loving.
Maine South would not meet an unbeaten team until the state semifinals, if Bartlett keeps winning. Bartlett struggled against a 5-4 Niles Notre Dame team last week, winning only 10-7. If Maine South gets to the 8A championship game, it could meet another Chicago-area power. Bolingbrook (10-0), which defeated Chicago Curie 62-13 last week, is the top seed. Naperville North (10-0) is the defending state champion. Mount Carmel (8-2), ranked No. 2 by MaxPreps, has won six straight since a loss to top-ranked St. Rita.
8A Showdown: Mount Carmel vs. Lincoln-Way East
Mount Carmel, a semifinalist in Class 8A last year, certainly has a challenging path to the semifinals.
The Caravan defeated Naperville Central 42-21 last week, but now faces Lincoln-Way East (9-1) in the second round Friday night and likely Naperville North (10-0) in the quarterfinals next week. If the Caravan survives all that, it might face unbeaten Bolingbrook in the semifinals.
In last week’s opening-round win, Mount Carmel’s Milton Greer rushed for 204 yards and three touchdowns on 23 carries. Quarterback Jordan Lynch, a Northern Illinois recruit, ran for a touchdown and passed for one.
Since losing consecutive games to Providence Catholic and St. Rita in successive weeks early in the season, the Caravan has won six straight and averaged more than 43 points per game.
“Ever since we lost to St. Rita, we’ve been practicing with a sense of urgency that coach Frank (Lentl) said he wanted to see,” Greer told the Chicago Sun-Times.
The Caravan will get a stiff test from Lincoln-Way East, which finished second in the Southwest Suburban Blue. The Griffins’ only loss was to unbeaten and league champ Bolingbrook.
Beware of Ice Pellets
Weather will be a big factor as the football playoffs head into Round 2 Friday and Saturday. And you don’t have to remind Mount Carmel and Wheaton-Warrensville South what can happen in bad weather: Mount Carmel’s 6-2 loss to Providence came in a driving rain and WW South’s regular season-ending 1-point loss to Naperville North came in stormy conditions.
But this time, it won’t be just wet. It’s also going to be cold and windy, which is going to make it difficult for passing games and for receivers to hold on to the ball.
Weather forecasters call for rain and wind Friday, with a possibility of rain turning into ice pellets Friday night. Saturday, it’ll be snow or rain showers with temperatures holding in the 30s. Brrrr.
Double Trouble
It was bad enough that a 7-6 loss in the rain two weeks ago at Naperville North cost Wheaton-Warrensville South the DuPage Valley championship and an unbeaten season.
Last week, another 8-7 loss in the 7A playoffs sent the Tigers home for good. Downers Grove (6-4), seeded No. 7, defeated the Tigers on a touchdown and two-point conversion with 1:39 left, and then securing a fumble off a squib kick to prevent WW South from getting the ball.
After scoring a touchdown, Downers Grove coach John Wander chose to go for a two-point conversion instead of a point-after kick and a tie. Following a pass-interference call against WW South on the first two-point play, quarterback Dan Sheppard scored for the two-point conversion and 8-7 win.
“When we stopped their first drive of the game … it made our kids believe we could be on the field with them,” Wander said.
The reward for Downers Grove is a home game. The Trojans will play host to No. 3 seed Proviso East (8-2) at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
Boys Soccer: New Trier, Neuqua Valley in Semis
A 5-0 win Tuesday over Waukegan sent New Trier’s boys soccer team into the Class 3A Final Four this weekend at North Central College in Naperville.
New Trier (19-1-1) will meet Naperville Neuqua Valley (21-4-2) in one semfinal Friday night; Edwardsville (23-4) will play Rockford Boylan (24-3-1) in the other. The winners will meet at 8 p.m. Saturday for the state title.
Kyle McCrudden has scored 20 goals for New Trier, which is in the Final Four for the third consecutive year.
In Class 2A, Lake View (18-7-1) will meet Sacred Heart-Griffin (19-2-2) and Peoria Notre Dame (19-3-1) will meet St. Joseph (16-6-2) in the semifinals. Lake View is attempting to be the first Public League school to win a boys soccer state title since 1973.
“It was a historic day in Chicago on Tuesday (Election Day), and now we have a chance to make more history this weekend,“ Lakeview coach Fernando Rodriguez told the Chicago Sun-Times.
Winnebago won the 1A state championship last weekend, shutting out Elmhurst Timothy Christian, 2-0.
Volleyball: Benet Battles Naperville Central
Benet will be looking for victory No. 38 in its Class 4A section final Thursday night. The Redwings meet defending state champion Naperville Central (33-5).
The winner of Thursday’s match will meet Edwardsville or Quincy in the Super Sectional.
The state tournament in all classes will be held Nov. 14 and 15 at Normal.
Fishing: 214 Schools Goin’ Fishing
The Illinois High School Association announced this week that 214 of 775 schools statewide registered for the IHSA’s first-ever state championship in bass fishing. The tournament will be held May 8 and 9 at Carlyle Lake, the largest manmade lake in Illinois located in the south-central portion of the state.
IHSA Executive Director Marty Hickman said the registration total “greatly exceeded our expectations for the first season of this activity.“
The tournament will involve schools of all sizes, from the enrollment of 5,555 at Joliet to the 60 at DeLand-Weldon.
Paul Bowker covers the Chicago area for MaxPreps. He may be reached at bowkerpaul1@aol.com